The right to health

Abstract

Health rights are in many ways the most complex of rights to theorize and promote through advocacy, as they challenge views of what is natural and normal both in social and bio-legitimated constructs, as well as demanding that we contest the boundaries of what have been considered the traditional realms of law and politics. Health is deeply and inextricably intertwined with other rights, both civil and political as well as economic, social and cultural; it is also dependent on interpretations of equality and issues such as trade and fiscal policies that relate to economic governance; and, ultimately, the advancement of health-related rights depends upon both the legal and health systems in a country. After setting out some theoretical starting points for working on the right to health and health-related rights, this chapter highlights selected aspects of normative evolution in the UN system in relation to health rights. The chapter then provides a brief overview of the treatment of health issues and the right to health in regional human rights systems. Finally, the text notes some of the other bodies of international law that are relevant to understand in advancing health-related rights.